Whether it’s a secret shopper scheme, work-from-home scam, or a phony offer of employment, job-related scams are the worst because they can dash your hopes and steal your money or your identity. It’s easy for scammers to create email, websites and online “job applications” that look very professional.

Tips to Avoid Falling for Fake Job Scams:

Job postings with grammatical errors, misspellings and lots of exclamation marks are likely scams. Ads promoting jobs with generic titles, such as admin assistant or customer service rep, and containing the phrases "Teleworking OK," "Immediate Start" and "No Experience Needed" are popular in scam ads.

If a job looks suspicious, search for it in Google. If the result comes up in many other cities with the exact same job post, it is likely a scam.

Be very cautious of any job that asks you to share personal information or hand over money. Scammers will often use the guise of running a credit check, setting up direct deposit or paying for training.

Check out the business' website to make sure the opening is posted there. If you are still skeptical, call the business to check on the position.